THE auction house I have frequented for 15 years has shut down -- depriving me of one of my great interests. I curse all the TV programmes that have killed off antique collecting for amateurs.

Until the new year I delighted in viewing goods, from the cheapest tat to magnificent Georgian linen presses, each Wednesday.

I also caught auction fever more than a couple of times bidding over the odds for must haves on Thursdays.

Now all that has gone, from my doorstep anyway.

I'm not in the Sotheby's class, but I wish I was.

On February 1 there's a local timepiece going under the hammer -- a splendid mahogany longcase clock signed T Bridge, Wigan. The History Shop tells me he was a clockmaker of some repute and was made a freeman of the borough in 1712. He worked in the town until 1745 and was responsible for an early one finger clock. The splendid timepiece pictured has an estimate of £1,200 to £1,800 -- looks cheap at twice the price for something with such a local history. The only problem is it has been messed about a bit which will put off the perfectionists. The movement dial is believed to be dated from around 1730 and the arch to the dial and case to 1760. Imagine the tales it could tell though if it could reveal the secrets of its past. I'd love it.